On Monday night, the 5-star RB announced on TV that he would sign with Arkansas, picking the Razorbacks over Miami.

On Wednesday, the South Plantation (Fla.) High School prospect didn’t show up for his signing ceremony. Shortly after that, we found out that his mother had “confiscated” her son’s letter of intent because she didn’t want him leaving the area to play football.

Then, his mother hired the Cochran Firm to "represent the family's interests," Steve Gorten of the Sun-Sentinel reported.

"This is a very tough decision and they are weighing their options very carefully."

He was reportedly going to sign Thursday at noon, but instead it was pushed back more than an hour and Collins made it to that scheduled appointment—this time with his father, Johnny Collins, sitting alongside him to sign the letter of intent.

"It feels good to finally get it out of the way," Collins told reporters Thursday.

The highly rated and highly coveted running back from South Plantation High near Fort Lauderdale, Fla., did so with his father providing the written consent required by NCAA rules.

Collins said his mother, who would not sign the letter of intent on Wednesday as many expected, supported his college decision. But she was notably absent from his hastily scheduled event on Thursday, and a law firm founded by former O.J. Simpson attorney Johnnie Cochran said that Andrea McDonald retained their services to represent "the family's interests."

That announcement was made about 45 minutes before Alex Collins and his father Johnny Collins put pens to paper, officially sealing his college choice.

"I'm happy it's over," Alex Collins said. "I didn't think about going anywhere else because I had my mind set. This is where I wanted to go. I just talked to my mom. I let her know. I explained myself and we have a better understanding."

The running back said he was unaware that his mother hired attorney Jack Paris from the Cochran Law Firm, insisting that "no one hired any lawyers." But in a statement Thursday, Paris said the Collins family wanted "to make a clean choice that is free of any outside influences."

"It's where he wanted to go," said Johnny Collins, who was not part of Wednesday's planned ceremony.

Later Thursday, Paris released a second statement, saying it remains "a difficult time" for McDonald.

"She is a loving and caring mother who only wants her son to choose a university without any outside and inappropriate influences," Paris said. "Ms. McDonald hopes all NCAA rules and regulations were followed during today's signing. She is not seeking any personal financial gain because her only concern is for Alex's happiness and well-being."

Alex Collins ran for 2,915 yards and scored 38 touchdowns in his final two high school seasons, with some services touting him as the top all-purpose runner in this year's recruiting class. He originally committed to Miami, then opened his recruiting up in order to see other parts of the country. He said the ongoing NCAA investigation into the Hurricanes' athletic compliance practices played no role in his decision.

He said his mother is fine with the choice to go to Arkansas, but was leery that he was committing to go to school far from home and was worried that he had not fully thought the decision through. Collins said his mother missed Thursday's event because of her work schedule.

"From her standpoint, she wants to make sure this is the right decision for me," he said.

Arkansas said it received the paperwork shortly after Collins' signing event concluded.